Family

Author's Note: If you're still following the story, thank you. I realize that this part of it will be very polarizing for some of the people that have faithfully followed the last few chapters. Like always, there is a method to the madness, I am not altering the character, as I said before a lot of the events are inspired on real life events, not just from my life but from the life of a few other friends that graciously shared their life story with me.

If you read "Of the Life of D..." in the non-erotic section, you will understand that my vision on a properly formed character is that the character must go through stages, trials, and inevitably be changed by those. But like a true to life character, not all changes can be or will be for the best, you don't feel the warmth of the sun until well after the winter has ended. It seems like people enjoyed reading "The Interlude," and based on that and how this part of the story will end, I have decided to include the lives of some of the supporting characters into small, single chapter stories.

After this particular series, D will be taking a long, perhaps permanent break, while I focus on other characters. I will be bringing him back, but after these events it is understandable that he would need to go off into the sunset. So please keep this in mind, this chapter is designed to brutalize, and eviscerate D and his vision of himself, not just as the young man that is looking for his place on the world, but as the savage Daemon who has been molded since a young age to take up a vile existence in the criminal world. Which part of those personalities is he really?

Much love,

aka_Mike

*****

"How many is that?" Agent Presley asked for what felt like the 100

th

time in that day alone. He was not sure how it happened, but something inside him knew that D had a lot to do with it. That was the reason he had been sent to this assignment after all, his long history with D was a great asset. D had taken over his family's business enterprises, Presley knew that they were heavily involved in weapons trafficking and other illicit activities, however he could not prove anything. As far as his investigation was concerned, D and his family were completely out of the business that suddenly seemed to implode around him.

"Fifty that have taken pleas," Agent Davis responded, "there's over 300 names in booking. All low tier criminals, none really have any true connections to the leaders of the families in the city. I think we have pretty much dismantled two families, a third one has closed shops."

"None from D's family or their new associates?" Presley already knew the answer, D had been careful not to allow any of his members to be caught up in the waves of arrests going on in the city. Even the large number of murders were easily pinned on the two families that were now all but gone completely.

"Nope," Davis replied, "they're still quiet. Everything they are doing is staying inside their home, nothing illegal there."

"How many other families are left?"

"Major players? The

Castellanos

are barely hanging on of course, the

Acostas

are still quite alive, they are making moves to take over the left over business dealings that are being vacated by the fallen families, I'm sure they're the ones behind all this mess. The

Russians

, along with the

Salvatos

over in the eastern side have always been friendly with D's family up until the arrest of Angel. I'm sure that they will be reaching out soon." Davis closed the large book where they were keeping the names of the newly arrived bookings. "All in all, things are looking good."

"No," Presley replied, "D is planning something, I can feel it in my bones. For now, we just clean up whatever he is tossing out for us, I'm sure there is something here that we aren't seeing. I'm gonna stop by for a visit with his folks, see if there are any changes."

"Did you read the report on Casper's people? They too have been quiet as of late, they absorbed a few blocks from when that small outfit got taken out earlier in the month, but other than that they have been toeing the line, you think D has something to do with that?"

"Without a doubt," Presley replied, "there aren't a lot of reasons why he would reach out to such a different group of individuals if he did not have a plan for them."

"Well, if he was involved, it is impressive how quickly he managed to dismantle three of the families in the area, without firing a single round," Davis mused, "shit if that is what he is going to be concerning his time with, we might as well give him a wide berth and look the other way."

"Look the other way..." Presley repeated, "God damn it, D."

"What?" Davis looked at him in confusion as Presley began to gather his jacket.

"That's what this is," Presley said, "this is a way for him to make us look the other way. Shit, shit, shit...!"

"So if his plan is not to take over, then what the fuck is it?" Davis grabbed his own jacket as he followed Presley out the door.

"Three card monty," he said as they moved out of their temporary headquarters and jumped in the car. "We need to see his brother."

...

"Are you ever going to speak to me?" The fact that she had spoken to me was surprising, regardless of the anger that it invoked within me. Her pride was still hurt apparently, and she needed to have some type of control.

"I have nothing to say to you," I replied, more anger and bile seeping from my mouth as I said those words, "and I sure as hell will not give you any room in my life to find some way to fuck it up even more."

"How can you possibly hate me so much?" She did not cry, this was more a question to satiate her curiosity rather than a plea.

"It's simple," I replied, "I blame you for the first experiences that made me the man I have become: jaded, untrusting, cold, distant, and broken." I looked at her, "and you made my father that same way, lying to him for so many years in your own self-righteousness." She tried to speak but I held my hand up, "don't bother, I have heard it all before. I have to thank you for one thing, though, you made me realize something important and gave me a valuable lesson that has kept me alive over these past years."

"What lesson?" She asked, reeling back from what she knew would be a heart shattering revelation.

"You showed me that people can't be trusted at their surface." I took a drag from my cigarette, "you see, if I had maintained my mentality before finding out about your true colors, maybe I would never have given Jessica a chance at life. Now, I look at her as she smiles happily in the arms of a man that is fast becoming one of my closest friends. Her son, who would have grown up not having a family beyond his mother is now surrounded by people that love him and care for him deeply. Hell, mother, your lesson showed me that maybe my brother was not as full of shit as I would have thought in the past, and that maybe his refusal to reach out to me was a sincere form of accepting my decision to walk away from all this instead of a manipulative power move."

"I tried to explain it to your father," she replied, "it was a one-time mistake."

"Are you surprised that he didn't believe you?" I looked at her now with curiosity and confusion. She still was having difficulties accepting her responsibility in the actions that had led her to deceive my father into believing that his oldest child was his blood son. She had cheated, if my father knew the details behind her betrayal, he did not share with me and I did not pry.

"No," she turned to walk away, "I just wish he would stop looking at me the way you do."

"You don't get to decide how others feel over your betrayal," I replied, "and that is what makes forgiving you so God damned difficult. You believe your own shit so much that you actually think that you are the victim here, but the truth is that you were the one that broke this family apart. You are the one that almost broke a father and son's relationship with your fucking little secrets. You are the one that drove me away with your fucking games. You did this to yourself and to our family, mother. Don't you fucking dare try to minimize your actions."

As she walked away, I felt a set of hands wrapping themselves around me, soft breasts pushed against my back and a different smell filled my nostrils. "Did you have to be so cruel to her?"

"You have seen that side of me, my darling," I answered her, "I have little tolerance for betrayal and deceit, especially when those things lead up to my family being hurt." I turned to look into Anais' eyes, just as their grey tint lightened a bit.

"She is your mother," she replied, "I just think that one day she will be gone and you might regret all these things that you are saying to her, is all."

"Anais," I said, placing my hands on her chin and forcing her to look into my eyes, "I love you, but traitors must be kept at a distance, we cannot have any shred of mercy on them."

"I'm just trying to protect you from yourself," she replied, a small whine to her voice.

"That's not your job," I said, "its my job to watch you, not the other way around. Now go back, join the party and enjoy yourself. I need a few minutes alone, to think." She slowly nodded and walked inside the house.

"I think she loves you, boss," Francisco said as soon as she had walked inside the house.

"Why are you out here, you should be enjoying your time with Jessica. We are about to become extremely busy."

"Its my job to protect you, boss," he replied, a smirk on his face, "that was just as fast, wasn't it?"

"Yes," I replied, laughing at his comment. "They bit me in the ass just as fast. Since you are out here, I need to speak with you. I need to ask you to do something for me, without question or hesitation."

"Anything, boss," he replied.

"If my suspicions are right," I began, "in the next few weeks, I will need you to trust me wholeheartedly. There will be a time when your loyalty will be tested, but I need you to understand that the decisions that I will be making and the actions that I will take will demand a whole lot of trust from you."

"I'm offended that you would feel like you need to ask me that, boss," he replied, deeply insulted.

"I know who betrayed the family, who caused your brother's death, and who set my cousin up to try to take over the business and the fall if anything went wrong with their plans." I looked at him as his jaw remained open, surprise and shock were an understatement as I said this, "before you ask, no I will not tell you. Not yet, that is why I needed the private investigator, I gave them a target, and if my suspicions are correct, I should have all the evidence I need before we move forward."

"How? When?"

"I have been thinking about it for a while," I replied, "but the final pieces of the puzzle fell into place not too long ago. I just need the confirmation, mainly because of the repercussions that will come from the identity of the individual."

...

"Are you ready to speak to us?" Davis asked the man as he pretended to be asleep in his bunk inside the small cell. He was the only one in that tiny space, books littered the ground beneath his bed, and the smell of old cigarettes filled the air.

"Isn't there some type of law about not fucking with prisoners while they try to sleep?" the prisoner did not move a muscle as he replied.

"I could blast music at an obscene volume to keep you awake all night if I felt like it," Presley replied, "all I would need to do is pull a chair and sit here with you to prevent torture charges. Unlike my partner here, I don't have time to play games. Do you know who I am?"

"Should I?"

"Well," Presley replied, "I would hope that you understood that 'faith is universal,' and that you would not be as stubborn as the mules in the Grand Canyon." I knew that both his name and D's codename were inspired through Biblical origins, this was an easy was to let him know that I knew more about his life.

"Tell your buddy to leave," the man replied, "once he is gone, you and I can talk."

"Get you a cup of joe," Presley told Davis, " we'll speak later." Davis left without a word, he understood how Presley worked his interrogations, he would find a way to identify with the prisoner, and would exploit any advantage in order to get his answers.

"How is my father?" He did not move from the bed as he asked.

"Good," Presley replied, digging a cigarette of his own, "he is growing a garden. Your brother got him a dog, and your nephew loves to spend the days chasing after it. The worst of it is gone for the most part, he actually smiles more frequently now."

"I'm glad," Angel stirred and sat in his bed, "pops didn't deserve this."

"Not many people out there do," Presley replied, "but your brothers are bringing him out of the worst part of it."

"D?" His eyes narrowed, his worry at his brother was sobering.

"That's why I am here," Presley replied, "he is doing great, three families are down. I can't prove it, but I am more than positive it was your brother's doing, he was always a brilliant tactician. Not a single drop of blood was spilled by your family." That last statement calmed his hidden fears.

"What do you want from me?"

"I grew up in a sheltered life," Presley began, "when I joined the military, it truly was the first time that I had been away from home. I was foolish, I was an easy target for scams. I remember I was in the park one day, after looking at the Alamo and that statue with the names of the people that gave their lives, well a man approached me. He bet me a single dollar in a card game that I had never seen, he had three cards, and all I had to do was find the Queen of Hearts."

"Three card monty."

"I had never seen or heard about the game, but I was lucky, or so I thought. The first games, I easily found the card, then I started betting double or nothing, over and over again. Next thing I knew, I was the one asking for double or nothing, after being about a grand into debt." Presley looked at the man, "before I pointed at a card, a voice behind me just said 'right sleeve.' I turned and looked at the sleeve, sure enough there it was. Your brother laughed at me for days, but never again did I ever go out without him. He explained to me that what made the game so challenging was the distraction: the dealer made you look in one direction while he made changes in another."

"What did my brother do?"

"I need to hear the details of the raid that brought you here," Presley replied, "because I am pretty sure that he has figured out who is responsible, and even as we speak, he is making plans to make them pay."

"Shit," Angel replied, "then I need you to do something for me first."

"Sure."

"You agree without even knowing what I am about to ask you to do?" His look reminded me a lot of D, it was clearly a family gesture, well-rehearsed over years of observation.

"You are my brother's brother," Presley replied, "like him, you would not ask me to put my career in jeopardy or my life in danger without cause." It was his turn to look confused, but there was also a look of pride deep in his eyes.

"Whenever I ask you to," he began, "you will need to find someone for me. This will make you go out of town, because this person is a very powerful witness to a lot of information that your agency will be very interested in knowing. Looking for this person will certainly take you out of town, away from any electronic means for people to reach you."

"Why would I do that?"

"Because you are my brother's brother," he replied, "and when someone bleeds on our behalf, we are honor bound to take care of them. You have a good night, Agent. I have my hour on the exercise yard at ten."

"Did you get anything from him?" Davis asked as he handed Presley a cup of coffee, "or did he do his 'you want something from me that I am not going to give to you,' act?"

"I'm meeting him tomorrow at ten," Presley replied, "he confirmed my theory of D's activities with the three card monty scheme, and hopefully I will learn all the details about it tomorrow morning."

"Why don't we just haul him in here and make it a family reunion?" Davis was annoyed.

"How much of D's file did you read?" Presley replied.

...

"There's still about 2 million missing," Edith said as she handed him the papers, "every dollar that was declared is accounted for. Even my stupid husband's schemes are included, even the ones that he tried to hide. But I can't find those 2 million."

"Did you check the weapon purchases?" I replied, glancing across the well prepared spreadsheets.

"Why..." she stopped for a second, recognizing her error. "But the weapons were never actually bought."

"But the security funds would have been exchanged," Francisco said, "a guarantee of purchase. Depending on how many weapons, that amount would be substantial, and more importantly in cash."

"But my brother would not have been stupid enough to not leave a trace," I replied, "he would have left a trace of money going somewhere, maybe a club purchase or a boat."

"Well," Edith replied, "there is this purchase for a boat that your Uncle authorized," she flipped into one of the pages, her breasts resting on my shoulders. My breath almost escaped me, Francisco just laughed at my discomfort.

"Is there anything else made out to this company?" I tried to clear my throat loud enough to try to signal to Edith that she was affecting me in a very profound way. If she noticed, she did not care enough to move.

"No," she replied, flipping through the pages, "this is it."

"Retainer," Francisco replied, "is the amount $20,000?"

"How did you know?" I looked at him closely, he never failed to surprise me.

"Usual charge for a retainer is 1%," he replied, a slight smug tone in his voice, "you said you were missing 2 mil. I'd look for small cash withdrawals of less than 10 grand since that day and the day of the arrest. That would prevent any alerts from being raised."

"Fuck me," Edith said, "I limited the cash withdrawals in the search to anything under $500."

"I want every single dollar accounted for," I said, "if possible, every damn penny. Go, find it."

"You're on my shit list, fucko," she told Francisco as she punched him in the arm, her temper flaring as she walked away.

"Shit," he muttered as we both heard her slam the door on her way out. "Should I be on the lookout for a dick-seeking knife to come out of the dark?"

"Yes," I replied, laughing at his clear discomfort, "how are Casper and the boys doing?"

"Good," he replied, "they are almost respectable members of society. They have cleaned up their areas, took over a lot of territory once their... competition disappeared. Then, with their community work, they have been making solid connections with their communities, Casper has been wondering when you are going to bring him in for another talk. He still has that bullet, you know?"

"Yeah?" I was amused by that, I had threatened him on our first encounter, more like a promise if he or any of his people fucked up. "Should I be worried?"

"No," he replied, "he makes it a point to carry a 9mm, to make sure that everyone knows that the 40mm he has on his neck could never be used by him. I saw one of their initiations, he and his close men all dress up. One of the young thugs in the neighborhood wanted in, and Casper looked him up and down. He took the bullet from his shirt, and showed it to the young man, 'this bullet has my name on it, a great man promised to put it through my head if any of my boys fuck up. You have to be willing to put your name on that list as well if you are going to join us.'